Famous Planes

Related Links

• Almanac: Aviation
• Famous Firsts in Aviation
• The Spirit of St. Louis
• Absolute World Records
• The National Aviation Hall of Fame
• The Wright Brothers Centennial

Passenger Planes

• Boeing 707
  The world's first successful commercial jetliner
• Boeing 747
  They've flown more than 3.5 billion passengers, the equivalent of more than half the world's population
• Concorde
  Its futuristic style and Mach 2 speed made it the darling of the jetset

Private Planes

• Piper Cub
  "Flies like a Cub" is still the pilot's ultimate compliment for an airplane
• Lear Jet 23
  Brainchild of a tinkerer

Fighter Planes

• P-51 Mustang
  The most famous and beloved warbird
• MiG-15
  The air power of the Evil Empire
• Lockheed Martin F-16
  The world's most popular fighter plane

Bombers

• Boeing B-52
  More than fifty years later, it's still flying
• Northrup B-2 (Stealth Bomber)
  The stealth bomber's features cost twice their weight in gold

Experimental and Spy Planes

• Bell X-1
  A plane that went faster than the speed of sound
• Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird
  The plane that literally grew several inches at Mach 3